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Fitchburg State falls in NCAA Division III tournament

Sentinel & Enterprise

Updated:
03/03/2013 12:09:21 AM EST

Fitchburg State s Mike Ingram-Rubin drives to the hoop during Saturday s NCAA Division III tournament game against the University of Rochester. (COURTESY PHOTO / KEITH WALTERS / UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER)

ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- The Falcons' incredible season came to a heartbreaking end Saturday, as the Fitchburg State University men's basketball team fell to host University of Rochester, 91-86, in the opening round of the NCAA Division III tournament.

Fitchburg State, making its first-ever NCAA tournament appearance, hung tough throughout the contest before a jam-packed crowd inside the Louis Alexander Palestra athletic center. It was the 14th trip to the Big Dance for the Yellowjackets.

In addition to facing the No. 18 team in the country and playing on the road in a hostile environment, the Falcons had to overcome first-half foul troubles as starters Mike Ingram-Rubin and Brandon Selby each had three fouls heading into halftime.

Fitchburg State s Kurt Steiner drives the baseline during Saturday s NCAA Division III tournament game against the University of Rochester. (COURTESY PHOTO / KEITH WALTERS / UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER)

Despite those difficulties, Fitchburg State still held a 67-66 lead with 10:25 remaining as senior Tom Henneberry scored a career-high 33 points on 11-of-21 shooting.

Henneberry, Ingram-Rubin (16 points) and junior Zach Valliere (16 points, 11 rebounds) did everything they could to help the Falcons (16-11) try to pull off the upset. Ultimately, it took a career performance from Rochester's (22-4) John DiBartolomeo to deny Fitchburg State its first NCAA tournament win. The Falcons were sent home after DiBartolomeo, the two-time University Athletic Association Player of the Year, scored a career-high 42 points, including 25 in the second half.

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"I'm proud of this team beyond words," said seventh-year Fitchburg State head coach Derek Shell, whose squad earned an automatic berth into the NCAAs after claiming the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference championship with three straight road wins.

"This one is going to sting for a while, but I think when we get some separation from this, we'll realize what we accomplished and I couldn't be prouder of a group of guys."

Ingram-Rubin was held scoreless over the first 11:15, but scored all 16 of his points during the game's final 28:45. He connected on 5 of 9 3-pointers, while Henneberry started off 2 of 2 and finished 2 of 6 from 3-point range.

The Falcons shot 41.7 percent from beyond the arc (10 of 24) and 44.1 percent from the floor (30 0f 68), while Rochester shot 31.6 percent on 3-pointers (6 of 19) and 40 percent from the floor (28 of 70).

It was a clean game for both schools, as Fitchburg State, which entered averaging almost 20 turnovers per game, committed only four during the contest. The Yellowjackets only turned the ball over eight times.

Henneberry scored 20 first-half points on 7-of-10 shooting to lead the Falcons, who shot a blistering 50 percent (17 of 34) in the opening half. Rochester was nearly as proficient from the field, connecting on 48.6 percent (17 of 35) in the first as the teams entered intermission tied at 48.

Fitchburg State started the second half on a 9-3 run and led 57-51 as Valliere scored three baskets and Jeremy Kimber threw down a fast-break dunk, but Valliere picked up his fourth foul with 13:21 remaining and went to the bench.

Rochester answered with an 8-2 run and pulled even at 59 when DiBartolomeo collected a rebound and scored with 12:37 left.

Henneberry hit a jumper and two free throws, and Ingram-Rubin swished a 3 for a 66-63 Fitchburg State lead, but the Yellowjackets responded with an 8-1 run to take a 71-67 lead with 9:05 remaining.

Henneberry ended the run with a pair of free throws, and when he hit a jumper the Falcons trailed 77-75 with 6:20 remaining. But Rochester once again went on a run, 5-0, and led 82-75 after Nate Vernon swished a 3 from the right wing with 5:05 remaining,

Following a Fitchburg timeout, Ingram-Rubin buried 3 to pull the Falcons within 82-78 with 4:50 left. DiBartolomeo and Valliere each hit a pair of free throws, and the Falcons trailed 84-80 with 3:28 remaining.

Both teams then went into a mini-slump, with each squad turning the ball over twice and missing good looks at 3-pointers as neither side scored during a span of 3:20.

DiBartolomeo missed a 3, but forced a steal and fed Kevin Sheehy for a fast-break layup and an 86-80 lead with 46 seconds left. It was Sheehy's first basket of the half and caused the Falcons to call timeout.

Out of the timeout, Henneberry missed a layup and Vernon went 1 of 2 on free throws to extend the lead to 87-80, but Anthony Muccioli hit a bank shot to trim the deficit to five with 25 seconds left.

After two more Rochester free throws, Henneberry drove the length of the court and hit a layup to pull the Falcons within 89-86 with three seconds remaining, but a pair of DiBartolomeo free throws clinched the win.

"They were the No. 1 team in the country at one point," Henneberry said. "In the big games this year, we came to play. We weren't scared of anything. If they came out on a 5-0 run, we answered back, and I'm really proud of how our team kept coming back."

Rochester, which improved to 31-18 all-time in the NCAA tournament, advances into the round of 32 and will face Ithaca (N.Y.) College, while Fitchburg's season comes to an end.

Given that the Falcons won just 12 games during the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons, winning 29 games over the past two years and qualifying for the NCAA tournament gives Henneberry hope that the program is heading in the right direction.

"We wanted to show that we belonged here, that this wasn't some fluke and that we weren't just a lucky team," Henneberry said. "We deserved to be here and hopefully we can continue with this and this will start a long tradition of Fitchburg teams going to the tournament."

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